


white petals of daisy

by wintercrystale



Series: in a universe without you [5]
Category: NU'EST, Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Confessions, Light Angst, M/M, Unrequited Love, every fic is a happy ending if you know whose pov to look from, except not with sujin, hwang siblings, the 2hyun is actually just hinted like you have to squint to see it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:20:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27433456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wintercrystale/pseuds/wintercrystale
Summary: “Moving on is not my intention.”“Hyunjin.”“Do I really have no chance?”Jonghyun’s little movements still for a second, fingers wrapped around his cup of lukewarm coffee as he puts on his thinking face. It’s not that Jonghyun has to think about how to answer the question, Hyunjin thinks, he’s just trying to arrange his words around the inevitable.
Relationships: Hwang Hyunjin/Kim Jonghyun | JR, Hwang Minhyun/Kim Jonghyun | JR
Series: in a universe without you [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1761733
Comments: 8
Kudos: 22





	white petals of daisy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CelestialSnowy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelestialSnowy/gifts).



> i ditched this draft at like 400 words because i didn't like it much. i still don't like it much but it's not like i ever like reading any of my works so here goes *drum rolls* a crack pair. because hidden singer happened last night. where hyunjin ended up in the same frame as jonghyun and laughed (i personally think a little too loudly??? your honor he has a crush— jk ofc he doesn't) at what jonghyun said. i screamed at mai and khione and anya about it, thought about this draft, and decided to finish it. so anyway khione this is for you💕💕💕
> 
> title taken from pentagon's daisy

Hyunjin had always seen Jonghyun in a whole different light ever since he was a kid.

Even with their five years of age difference, Jonghyun had always regarded Hyunjin as equal—unlike his own brother Minhyun who kept saying _“You’re a kid, what do you know?”_ with a mocking tone before catching him in a headlock. With Jonghyun, it’s always _“What do you want to know? I’ll tell you.”_

Maybe, just maybe, Hyunjin had started developing a crush on his brother’s best friend a long time ago.

The one time Hyunjin remembered his heart constricting in his chest because of Jonghyun was when he had been ten. It’s a vivid memory of one fine afternoon, all three of them on the way home from the school’s soccer field, worn out from playing all day. Minhyun kept bothering Hyunjin, repeatedly bumping shoulders with the younger even after Hyunjin whined for Minhyun to stop. Jonghyun only stared at the two amusedly then, tailing a little behind them in his quietude.

It ended up with Minhyun accidentally sending Hyunjin flying to the road, _almost_ getting him run over by a car speeding down—he would’ve died, he thought, had Jonghyun not been fast enough to pull his waist and get him out of harm’s way.

“Minhyun.” Jonghyun had glared at his guilty looking best friend after that, arm still tightly wound around Hyunjin’s waist as the kid was still in shock. “Quit playing around.”

Minhyun bit his own lip then, realizing his mistake but refusing to say sorry to his little brother for almost hurting him. As Jonghyun took it upon himself to be the one walking beside Hyunjin, Minhyun moved back to give them space.

Hyunjin flipped Minhyun the finger and Jonghyun didn’t even reprimand him for it. Without Hyunjin realizing, Jonghyun never let his arm fall from the younger’s waist, lingering there and making the skin burn under his touch—even if it’s still shielded by the thin piece of Hyunjin’s shirt fabric.

At that time, Hyunjin felt safe with Jonghyun.

And Jonghyun always gave Hyunjin that feeling of comfort whenever they’re around each other.

It didn't come to Hyunjin as a surprise, however, when one day, so many years later, he tried to tell Jonghyun about his feelings only to get a warm smile and an apologetic gaze instead.

“It’s not that I don’t like you, Hyunjin.” Jonghyun took a deep breath and straightened his back, leaning onto the table in front of him. “It’s just that…”

The crooked smile Hyunjin let show when Jonghyun trailed off was nothing like his usual smile whenever he spoke with Jonghyun. The café’s air-conditioned interior suddenly felt too cold for Hyunjin as he tightened his red cardigan—a gift from Jonghyun for his birthday this year, unironically—around his shivering body. His newly bleached bangs fell over his eyes, hiding none of the self-inflicted agony from the still smiling Jonghyun. If they were closer and not in _this_ situation Hyunjin landed himself in, he knew Jonghyun would’ve brushed his bangs away from his face and tucked them behind his ear.

The simple black hair tie wrapped around Jonghyun’s right wrist reminded Hyunjin that Jonghyun did care about him, but Hyunjin was foolish to think that it could mean something more.

Out of habit, Jonghyun took the hair tie from his wrist and offered it to Hyunjin anyway. The younger declined politely and cursed himself as his heart rate increased in his chest.

_This was why he fell in the first place._

“You’re like a little brother to me,” was the reason Jonghyun finally settled for, the only string of words that would make sense given their circumstances—Hyunjin couldn’t help the scoff that left his lips.

“I get it.” Hyunjin sighed, running a hand through his hair in the way he knew people would fall for—Jonghyun excluded, unfortunately, to Hyunjin’s dismay.

For a long time, Hyunjin had always thought that this would happen. It didn’t hurt any less, hearing the words being uttered out loud by the lips of the man he loved. He didn’t wear his heart on his sleeve, didn’t bother to take care of it himself either, but didn’t want to hand it over to anyone else if it wasn’t Jonghyun.

So even now, Jonghyun had Hyunjin’s heart in his palm, still intact, though a little dented and less alive. He cradled it gently and made sure he wouldn’t hurt it even further, knowing that Hyunjin would’ve done the same had the situation been flipped.

“I’m not going to be around anymore, anyway.” Hyunjin grinned, though half heartedly as he still had to work a few stitches on his heart. “I’m leaving next week, I hope you’ll still come to send me off.”

“Of course.” The apologetic smile never left Jonghyun’s lips, Hyunjin was starting to get sick of it. “It’s not that I want to be rid of you.”

(And of course Hyunjin knew that Jonghyun would still be by his side no matter what. He didn’t even have to tell Jonghyun to stay, the older would definitely stay without a question or the sliver of a doubt.)

“You might want to stay away from me though, don’t you think?”

Jonghyun shook his head. “No, but you might want to, so you can move on.”

Hyunjin crossed his arms and huffed petulantly. “Moving on is not my intention.”

Jonghyun frowned. “Hyunjin.”

God, Hyunjin hated that reprimanding tone of his.

“Do I really have no chance?”

Jonghyun’s little movements stilled for a second, fingers wrapped around his cup of lukewarm coffee as he put on his thinking face. It’s not that Jonghyun had to think about how to answer the question, Hyunjin thought, he’s just trying to arrange his words around the inevitable.

A flash of light from Jonghyun’s phone screen on the table caught Hyunjin’s eyes. A glance at the notification—Hyunjin didn’t pry on purpose, he promised—told him _everything_ he needed to know about the truth.

( _from: hmh💕_ _  
_ _Hey, where are you?_ )

If Jonghyun knew that Hyunjin saw that, he didn’t say anything and just turned his phone screen back off.

“I think it would be best if you find someone else,” Jonghyun said, clear enough for Hyunjin to hear and remember for days to come.

Of course, Hyunjin would never be able to compete with his older brother.

“I think,” Jonghyun continued, “I want you to be with someone that deserves you.”

“And you don’t?” Hyunjin retorted, feeling himself getting a little more bitter by the seconds.

“I want you to be with someone that can love you back just as much.”

Hyunjin smiled.

“I concede.” Hyunjin rested his arms on top of the table, making sure to stare straight into Jonghyun’s eyes. “Under one condition.”

Jonghyun raised an eyebrow, lips pursing into a more serious expression.

“Be happy, that’s all I ask.”

The smile returned. “I will, don’t worry.”

“Then, I’ll take my leave.” Hyunjin stood up and pushed his chair back. “Don’t worry about paying for the food.”

“Thank you,” Jonghyun said, looking up from where he’s still seated. “For trusting me enough to tell me.”

“I know I can trust you with anything.” Hyunjin smiled, a little more genuine this time. “Even my life.”

“You’ll always be a little brother to me, Hyunjin.”

“I know.”

Painfully so.

When Hyunjin left, he let Jonghyun guard a piece of his heart without any intent of retrieving it.

Moving on still wasn’t his intention, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> this series is supposed to contain fics crossposted from my tweet fics but i'm too lazy to tweet it.............. anyways the title doesn't exactly have anything to do with the fic i was just thinking of what title to give it and my brain just suddenly went "새하얀 꽃잎의 데이지" and i was like "ok" but also daisy symbolizes true love and new beginnings, so i think we can work on that😂
> 
> love you khione💕💕💕💕💕💕
> 
> and for the others, if you ever want to be my friend, hmu on [twitter](https://twitter.com/wintercrystale) or yell at me on [cc](https://curiouscat.me/wintercrystale)!


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